County gives Loveland-area storage business 60 days to fix problems

Bargain Storage in south Loveland faced several county violations

A storage business in south Loveland has 60 days to correct land-use and building-code violations, as a result of a hearing Monday afternoon before the Larimer County commissioners.

The business, Bargain Storage at 1450 Valency Drive, faced a list of allegations from county staff members ranging from allowing people to live in its units to allowing unapproved outdoor storage of trailers and vehicles to encouraging people to operate businesses from the metal shipping containers.

After hearing more than two hours of comment from Bargain Storage owner Bob Eason, his employees and tenants, county staffers and neighboring business owners, the commissioners said they believe Eason's heart is in the right place, and they gave him 60 days to finish bringing his business into compliance.

The business sits near the southeast corner of Valency Drive and Southwest 14th Street, adjacent to Loveland city limits.

Eason worked his way down a checklist of problems that the county staff had brought to his attention, telling the commissioners how he had taken care of most of the issues, including redoubling his efforts to keep people from staying overnight in the units.

In sometimes-tearful testimony, he told them he was just trying to help people in a tight spot make a living, and he was unaware that some of the things he allowed were illegal.

"Like President Obama said, we need to get this country back to work," he said. "I was trying to make a little space for them, like a garage ... where you could store stuff, but you could come and tinker around."

Eason talked about one tenant who has a disease that keeps him from holding a regular job who rents a storage unit where he strips recyclable parts from used electronic devices to resell.

"I didn't say hell no, it's not zoned for that," he said. "I thought it's like a garage. How many businesses ... started off in a garage?

"I thought I was doing the right thing," Eason said.

The owners and representatives of storage businesses bordering Eason's testified that they had seen people living at Bargain Storage as recently as Monday, and they told of thefts and illegal drug activity that they said had begun after Eason allegedly allowed people to live there.

Commissioner Steve Johnson said he doesn't have any problem with renters working on their possessions inside the units for their businesses, "as long as they are not having the public come ... and having sales outside their units."

In joining the 3-0 vote to allow Eason to continue operating his business while he brings it into compliance, Commissioner Tom Donnelly said, "I don't want to accuse any individual on our county staff, but it does seem like we're being fairly heavy-handed with Mr. Eason."